Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2 (stylized as Red Dead Redemption II) is a Revisionist Western-themed action-adventure game developed and published by Rockstar Games. It was released on October 26, 2018, for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles. The game is the third entry in the Red Dead series and is a prequel to the 2010 game Red Dead Redemption. The story is set in 1899 in a fictionalized representation of the Western, Midwestern and Southern United States and follows outlaw Arthur Morgan, a member of the Van der Linde gang. Arthur must deal with the decline of the Wild West whilst attempting to survive against government forces, rival gangs, and other adversaries. The story also follows fellow gang member John Marston, the protagonist of Red Dead Redemption. The game is presented through both first and third-person perspectives, and the player may freely roam in its interactive open world. Gameplay elements include shootouts, heists, hunting, horseback riding, interacting with non-player characters (NPCs), and maintaining the character's honor rating through moral choices and deeds. A bounty system similar to the "wanted" system from the Grand Theft Auto franchise governs the response of law enforcement and bounty hunters to crimes committed by the player. Red Dead Online, the online multiplayer mode of the game, was released as a beta version in November 2018 before a full release in May 2019. Broadly anticipated and marketed before release, Red Dead Redemption 2 broke several records and had the second-biggest launch in the history of entertainment, generating $725 million in sales from its opening weekend, and selling a total of more than 25 million copies. It was universally acclaimed by critics, who praised the story, characters, open world, and considerable level of detail. It received a number of perfect scores and awards, including the "Critics' Choice Award" at the 2018 Golden Joystick Awards, and honors such as "Best Narrative" and "Best Score/Music" at The Game Awards 2018. Gameplay Red Dead Redemption 2 is a Western-themed action-adventure game. Played from a first or third-person perspective, the game is set in an open-world environment featuring a fictionalized version of the Western United States. The game features both single-player and online multiplayer components released under Red Dead Online. The player controls outlaw Arthur Morgan, a member of the Van Der Linde gang, as he completes numerous missions—linear scenarios with set objectives—in order to progress through the story. Outside of missions, the player may freely roam its interactive world. The player may engage into combat with enemies using melee attacks, firearms, or explosives. Combat has been refined from the game's predecessor, and notable new mechanics consist of dual-wielding and the ability to use a bow. Unlike the previous game, the player is granted the ability to swim. Red Dead Redemption 2 unexploited land makes up the largest portion of the game world, and features diverse landscapes with occasional travelers, bandits, and wildlife. There are urban settlements in the game, ranging from farmhouses to towns and cities. Horses are the main forms of transportation, of which there are various breeds, each with different attributes. The player must either train or tame a wild horse in order to use it, with the exception of stolen horses; however they must saddle a horse in order to acquire ownership over it. Increased use of a horse will begin a bonding process, which can be increased by cleaning and feeding it, and the player will acquire advantages as they ride their horse. Stagecoaches and trains can also be used to travel. The player can hijack an incoming train or stagecoach by threatening the driver or passengers and then rob its contents or the passengers. The player may also witness or take part in random events encountered from exploring the game world. These include ambushes, crimes committed by other people, pleas for assistance, ride-by shootings, public executions, and animal attacks. For example, as Arthur explores the Wild West, he can find specific people in distress. If he decides to help them, they will be thankful and may reward Arthur if he crosses them again. The player may also take part in side-activities. These activities include small tasks with companions and strangers, dueling, bounty hunting, searching for treasure or other collectibles around the map such as rock carvings, and playing poker, blackjack, dominoes, and Five Finger Filet. Hunting animals also plays a major role in the game, providing food, income, and materials for crafting items. When hunting, players need to take into account several factors, including the choice of weapon and shot placement, which affect the quality of the meat and pelt and subsequently the price traders are willing to pay. Players can either skin the animal immediately or carry the carcass, which will rot over time and decrease its value and attract predators. The game focuses heavily on player choice for the story and missions. Certain moments in the story will give players the option to accept or decline additional missions and lightly shape the plot around their choices. The player can communicate with any NPC in dynamic ways new to the series. Arthur can choose different dialogue trees with NPCs, such as having a friendly chat, or insulting them. If the player chooses to kill an NPC, they can loot their corpse. Red Dead Redemption 2 brings back the Honor system from its predecessor by measuring how Arthur's actions are perceived in terms of morality. Morally positive choices and deeds like helping strangers, abiding the law, and sparing opponents in a duel will add up to the player's Honor. However, negative deeds such as theft and harming innocents, will subtract from the player's Honor. The story is influenced by Honor, as the dialogue and outcomes for Arthur often differ based on his Honor level. Hitting milestones for Arthur's Honor level will grant unique benefits, such as rewarding the player with special outfits and large discounts in stores. A low Honor level is also beneficial, as Arthur will receive a greater number of items from looted corpses. Maintaining Arthur is important, as he can undergo conditions that affect his health and stamina attributes. In addition to a health and stamina bar, Arthur also has health and stamina cores. These affect the rate at which his health and stamina regenerate. For example, wearing warmer clothes will mean he avoids freezing in a cold environment, but wearing them in a hot environment will result in him perspiring. Freezing or overheating will rapidly drain Arthur's cores. Arthur can also gain or lose weight depending on how much he eats, a feature absent from previous Rockstar games since Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. An underweight Arthur will have less health but at an increase of stamina, while an overweight Arthur will be able to better absorb damage but will have less stamina. Arthur can eat and sleep in order to replenish his cores. The player can bathe to remain clean, and can visit a barber to change hairstyles; Arthur's hair also grows realistically over time. The game features weapon degradation, with weapons requiring cleaning to maintain their performance. When Arthur uses a certain type of gun for a long period of time, he becomes more experienced with it, which improves weapon handling, reduces recoil, and increases the rate of reloading. Combat Gunfights are an essential mechanic in the game. The player can take cover, free aim, and target a person or animal. Individual body parts can also be targeted in order to take targets down without killing them. When the player shoots an enemy, the game's AI reactions and movements depend on where they were hit. Weapons consist of pistols, revolvers, repeaters, rifles, shotguns, bows, explosives, lassos, mounted Gatling guns and melee weapons such as knives and tomahawks. Red Dead Redemption 2 brings back the trademark mechanic in the franchise: Dead Eye, a targeting system that allows the player to slow down time and paint targets. Once the targeting sequence ends, Arthur fires to every marked location in a very short space of time. The Dead Eye system upgrades as the player progresses in the game, and will grant the player more abilities, such as being able to spot the fatal points of their enemies. The bounty system also returns from Red Dead Redemption, a crime-governing mechanic inspired from Grand Theft Auto s wanted system. When a player commits a crime, witnesses will run to the nearest police station to get the law to intervene, and the player will need to stop the witness in order to avoid repercussions. Once the law is alerted, law enforcers appear and will start investigating. When the player is caught, the Wanted meter appears with a bounty sent on their head. The bounty grows higher as the player commits more crimes, and more lawmen will be sent to hunt them. If the player has committed serious crimes and then manages to escape the law, bounty hunters will be hired to track them down in the wilderness. After committing enough crime, the U.S Marshals will be sent to the player's location. In order to escape law enforcement, the player must evade a red circular zone in the map and the wanted meter will slowly deplete. They can alternatively hide from the pursuers or kill them. Whether the player escapes or gets captured, the bounty will remain on their head, lawmen and civilians will be more vigilant, and regions where the crimes have been committed will be on lockdown. When caught by lawmen, the player has the opportunity to surrender if they are unarmed and on foot, however, bounty hunters will not accept surrender. The player can only get rid of their bounty by paying it off at a post office. Synopsis Setting and characters The world of Red Dead Redemption 2 spans five fictitious U.S. states. The states of New Hanover, Ambarino and Lemoyne are new to the series, and are located to the immediate north and east of Red Dead Redemption s world, whilst the states of New Austin and West Elizabeth return from Red Dead Redemption. The states are centered on the San Luis and Lannahechee Rivers and the shores of Flat Iron Lake. Ambarino is a mountain wilderness, with the largest settlement being a Native American reservation; New Hanover is a wide valley that has become a hub of industry; and Lemoyne is composed of bayous and plantations resembling Louisiana, and is home to the former French colony of Saint Denis, analogous to New Orleans. West Elizabeth consists of wide plains, dense forests, and the modern town of Blackwater. This region has been expanded from the original Red Dead Redemption to include a vast northern portion containing the small town of Strawberry. New Austin is an arid desert region centered on the frontier towns of Armadillo and Tumbleweed, also featured in the original game. Parts of the New Austin and West Elizabeth have been redesigned to reflect the earlier time period; for example, Blackwater is still under development, while Armadillo has become a ghost town because of a cholera outbreak. The player takes on the role of Arthur Morgan (Roger Clark), a lieutenant and veteran member of the Van der Linde gang. The gang is led by Dutch van der Linde (Benjamin Byron Davis), a charismatic man who extols personal freedom and decries the encroaching march of modern civilization. The gang also includes his best friend and co-leader Hosea Matthews (Curzon Dobell), Red Dead Redemption protagonist John Marston (Rob Wiethoff), gang members Bill Williamson (Steve J. Palmer), Javier Escuella (Gabriel Sloyer) and Micah Bell (Peter Blomquist), the elderly Uncle (James McBride and John O'Creagh), African-American member Lenny Summers (Harron Atkins), Native American hunter Charles Smith (Noshir Dalal), former O'Driscoll gang member Kieran Duffy (Pico Alexander), housewife-turned-bounty hunter Sadie Adler (Alex McKenna), Irishman Sean MacGuire (Michael Mellamphy), cook Simon Pearson (Jim Santangeli), loan shark Leopold Strauss (Howard Pinhasik), Dutch's lover Molly O'Shea (Penny O'Brien), taskmaster Susan Grimshaw (Kaili Vernoff), Tilly Jackson (Meeya Davis), Karen Jones (Jo Armeniox), Mary-Beth Gaskill (Samantha Strelitz), reverend Orville Swanson (Sean Haberle), and Abigail Roberts (Cali Elizabeth Moore) and Jack Marston (Marissa Buccianti and Ted Sutherland), who are John's partner and son respectively. The gang's allies include conman Josiah Trelawny (Stephen Gevedon), and Arthur's former partner, Mary Linton (Julie Jesneck). The gang's criminal acts bring them into conflict with various opposing forces including the wealthy oil magnate Leviticus Cornwall (John Rue), whose assets become a gang target. In response he recruits a team of agents from the Pinkerton Detective Agency, led by Agent Andrew Milton (John Hickok) and his subordinate Agent Edgar Ross (Jim Bentley), to hunt down the gang. The gang also encounter the Saint Denis-based Italian crime lord Angelo Bronte (Jim Pirri), Braithwaite family matriarch Catherine Braithwaite and Dutch's nemesis Colm O'Driscoll (Andrew Berg), leader of the rival O'Driscoll gang. Additional enemies include the Del Lobo, Laramie, Skinner, Murfree, and Lemoyne Raiders gangs, and the warring Gray and Braithwaite families. Other characters include Rains Fall (Graham Greene) and Eagle Flies (Jeremiah Bitsui), members of the Native American Wapiti tribe. Plot After a botched ferry heist in 1899, the Van der Linde gang is forced to leave their substantial money stash and flee Blackwater. The gang realize that the progress of civilization is ending the time of outlaws, and so decide to gain enough money to escape the law and retire. They rob a train owned by Leviticus Cornwall, who responds by hiring Andrew Milton and the Pinkertons to apprehend them. Arthur and the gang perform numerous jobs and heists in Valentine, and Dutch continually promises that the next heist will be their last. Arthur becomes bothered by recent recruit Micah's recklessness and willingness to resort to violence. Cornwall retaliates for the train heist, which culminates in a deadly shootout and the gang relocate to Lemoyne. They meet the Grays and Braithwaites, two warring families who are rumoured to be hoarding Civil War gold. Dutch tries to pit the families against each other, but underestimates them. The gang is ambushed by the Grays and Sean is killed; meanwhile, the Braithwaites kidnap John's son Jack. The gang retaliates and destroy both families. They learn that Jack is with Saint Denis crime lord Angelo Bronte, who returns Jack and embraces the gang. He uses them to increase his influence and then double-crosses them. Dutch kidnaps and feeds him to an alligator as revenge. The gang remain in Saint Denis, where Hosea and Dutch lead them in a bank robbery. The Pinkertons intervene, arresting John and killing Hosea and Lenny. Dutch, Arthur, Bill, Javier, and Micah escape the city via a ship heading to Cuba. A torrential storm sinks the ship, and the men wash ashore on the island of Guarma, where they become embroiled in a war between the tyrannical sugar plantation owners and the enslaved local population. The group successfully aids the revolution against the plantation owners and secure transport back to the United States. The group reunites with the rest of the gang, and Pinkertons immediately assault the camp but are repelled. Dutch becomes paranoid that one of the gang is working as an informant and also obsesses over one last heist. Although he insists that they must wait to liberate John, Arthur and Sadie disobey him and rescue John. Dutch doubts Arthur's loyalty, and has Micah replace him as lieutenant. Arthur becomes concerned that Dutch is no longer the man he knew, as he is becoming insular, abandons their ideals and murders Cornwall. Arthur is diagnosed with tuberculosis, which he caught while beating a sick farmer who owed money to the gang. Faced with his own mortality, Arthur reflects on his actions and how to protect the gang following his death. He persuades John to run away with Abigail and Jack and openly defies Dutch by aiding the local Native American people to prevent a slaughter when Dutch intends to use their fight against the U.S. army as a distraction to allow the gang to evade the Pinkertons. Several gang members become disenchanted and leave, while Dutch and Micah arrange one final heist of an Army payroll train. Arthur's faith in Dutch is shattered when he abandons Arthur to the Army, leaves John for dead, and refuses to rescue Abigail when she is taken. Arthur and Sadie again disobey Dutch to rescue Abigail from Milton, who names Micah as the Pinkertons' informer before Abigail kills him. Arthur returns to the camp and openly accuses Micah of betrayal. Dutch, Bill, Javier, and Micah turn on Arthur and the newly returned John, but the standoff is broken when the Pinkertons return and all six flee into the wilderness. Arthur can choose to aid John's escape by delaying the Pinkertons or return to the camp to recover the gang's money. Micah ambushes Arthur, and Dutch intervenes in their fight. Arthur convinces Dutch to abandon Micah and leave. If the player has high honor, Arthur succumbs to his injuries and disease and dies peacefully while watching the sunrise; if the player has low honor, Micah executes him. Eight years later, in 1907, John and his family are trying to lead an honest life. They find work at a ranch where John fights back against outlaws threatening his employer. Abigail believes John is unwilling to give up his old ways and leaves with Jack. This encourages John to take out a bank loan and purchase his own ranch as he tries to win her back. He reunites with Sadie, Uncle and Charles, the latter two help John build a new home while Sadie looks for Micah. John proposes to Abigail on her return. Against Abigail's wishes, John, Sadie, and Charles pursue Micah. They find that Dutch and Micah are working together again, but Dutch shoots Micah and leaves in silence, allowing John to kill him. Inside their cabin John finds the Blackwater stash, with which he pays his debt to the bank. John marries Abigail and they start their new life on their ranch alongside Jack and Uncle, as Sadie and Charles leave for other pursuits. The final scene shows the former Pinkerton agent Edgar Ross—now the director of the Bureau of Investigation—observing John's ranch, foreshadowing the events of Red Dead Redemption. Development ]] Red Dead Redemption 2 was developed by Rockstar Studios, a collaborative effort between all of Rockstar Games' studios functioning as a single team, using the proprietary Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE). Woody Jackson, who co-composed the score of Red Dead Redemption, reprises his role. The game was announced in October 2016. In the two days prior, the company had used various social media platforms as well as their own website to release two teaser images in the color and theme of Red Dead Redemption. The teaser images led to considerable attention and raised the stock price of its parent company Take-Two Interactive by nearly six percent. On the day of its announcement for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, some fans started petitioning Rockstar Games for the game to be made available on Microsoft Windows as well. Per an exclusivity agreement with Sony Interactive Entertainment, certain online game content will be timed exclusives for the PlayStation 4. Originally due for release in the second half of 2017, the game was delayed twice: first to Q1/Q2 2018, and later to October 26, 2018. The online multiplayer portion of the game called Red Dead Online was released as a closed beta on November 27, 2018, and unlocked for all players on November 30. During an IGN Q&A session with various Rockstar developers, when asked why it would not be available simultaneously with the base game, design director Imran Sarwar answered "Red Dead Redemption 2 is an absolutely massive story-based game that we hope people will be lost in for a long time and we want people to experience everything that world has to offer before we build on that with the Online experience" while also stating that "we Rockstar see them essentially as separate products that will grow and evolve independently of each other" and saying that the team has learned after launching online games that there are bound to be a few issues and that they wish to roll out the game as smoothly as possible. It was also mentioned that the game takes many of the favorite elements of Grand Theft Auto Online while also further expanding the original game's ideas. Marketing The game's debut trailer was released on October 20, 2016, depicting the open world environment, and the second and third trailers—released on September 28, 2017, and May 2, 2018, respectively—introduced the game's characters and story. A trailer released on August 9 features the first gameplay footage. It demonstrates the shooting and horse mechanics, and the ability to maintain the player's gang and camps. To spur pre-order sales, Rockstar collaborated with several retail outlets to provide special edition versions of the game. The "Special Edition" includes exclusive single-player content, while the "Ultimate Edition" features additional online content. The "Collector's Box" is a collection of physical merchandise relating to the game. Reception | GSpot = 9/10 | GB = | IGN = 10/10 | USG = }} Red Dead Redemption 2 received "universal acclaim" from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic. It is the highest rated PlayStation 4 and Xbox One game on Metacritic alongside Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V. Metascore All platforms All time|work=Metacritic|access-date=October 26, 2018}} Game Informer awarded the game a perfect score writing: "Rockstar Games has outdone itself again with Red Dead Redemption II. The up-close portrayal of the outlaw Van der Linde gang's unraveling is a compelling companion story that blends seamlessly with the original game, and depth and breadth of the open world is a technical triumph that every gamer should experience." IGN also awarded the game full marks, commenting "Red Dead Redemption 2 stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Grand Theft Auto V as one of the greatest games of the modern age. It's a gorgeous depiction of an ugly period that's patient, polished, and a huge amount of fun to play, and it's combined with Rockstar's best storytelling to date. Even after finishing the lengthy story I can't wait to go back and play more." In another full score review, Electronic Gaming Monthly wrote: "Criticisms often come easier than compliments, but in the case of Red Dead Redemption 2, I am at a loss. This is one of the most gorgeous, seamless, rootinest, tootinest games ever made, and if you voluntarily miss out on it, you're either not a gamer or in a coma." USgamer said, "is Red Dead Redemption 2 better than the first game? Very much so. Is Red Dead Redemption 2 perfect? No. Rockstar Games has crafted this huge, beautiful world with an attention to detail that's astounding..." and summarised by saying "Red Dead Redemption 2 is a fantastic game that should keep players satisfied for another eight years." Alessandro Fillari of GameSpot praised the story, characters, and animation, and said "Red Dead Redemption 2 is an excellent prequel, but it's also an emotional, thought-provoking story in its own right, and it's a world that is hard to leave when it's done." Peter Suderman, writing for The New York Times, considered Red Dead Redemption 2 as an example of video games as a work of art, comparing the game's abilities to "tell individual stories against the backdrop of national and cultural identity, deconstructing their genres while advancing the form" to the current state of film and television with similar works like The Godfather and The Sopranos. Some criticism focused on the game's control system, with Polygon summarising the feeling of it as "not one of difficulty and accomplishment, but constant monotony or frustration." Kotaku disparaged that interacting with the world became "frustrating and inconsistent" as a result of the game's "sludgy kinesthetics, jumbled control scheme, and unclear user interface", describing gameplay as "more like giving directions to an actor" due to "arduous, heavy, and inelegant" navigation and slow or unsatisfying button-inputs. Forbes echoed this by criticizing the game for having a noticeable input lag, and in another article writing that it "often feels like an absolute slog when it comes to the actual controls, mechanics and UI of the game". Push Square called the controls "serviceable" but at their worst "infuriating", and that the button layouts for various actions were too convoluted. USgamer was disappointed that Red Dead Redemption 2 fundamentally used the same control scheme that had been present in Rockstar titles since the release of Grand Theft Auto IV in 2008, and questioned why it had not been sufficiently improved upon in that time. Reviewers also critiqued how the focus on authenticity translated to gameplay in terms of player convenience and freedom. Gaming journalist Jim Sterling felt that the sheer amount of realism in the game limited capabilities and caused various scenarios or animations to be prolonged. In addition to these complaints, reviewers also found that despite its focus, the level of realism was concurrently lacking, with discrepancies noted between the game's sense of immersion and its presenting of mechanics which defied the laws of physics and animations they considered unrealistic; Polygon felt that "Ease of functionality is much more "immersive" than a series of button presses and animations that mimic the real thing" and believed "The pursuit of realism in video games ... doesn’t work in practice. The endless capacity to interact with equally endless items ends up creating endless, but meaningless, interactions." VentureBeat wrote that in spite of presenting a range of options for the player, the gameplay was still notably restrictive by preventing other opportunities. Both USgamer and Forbes felt that the wanted system was unfairly punishing to the player from committing crimes that were difficult to avoid, such as accidentally knocking into NPCs. Wired were also mixed on gameplay elements relating to the well-being of the player character and the required dedication, writing "In its perfection, RDR2 exchanges immersion for observation. At times, the constant character maintenance feels like a chore..." and that it "sometimes gets bogged-down in the RPG-like intricacies of keeping going in the game world." In Japan, Famitsu gave the game a near-perfect score of three tens and one nine. Sales Since the previous installment in the series was among the best-selling games of the seventh generation of video game consoles, many analysts believed that Red Dead Redemption 2 would be one of the highest-selling games of 2018 and would have a great effect on other game sales during the fourth quarter. When discussing the delay until October 2018, a writer from Forbes said "A huge arrival for [Red Dead Redemption 2] could be a crater that dampens sales of all competitors in that window, so I have to imagine this shockwave is being felt pretty hard right now around the industry." In July 2018, The NPD Group, a market research company, published an article titled "Video Game Industry Predictions for Holiday 2018", where author and industry analyst Mat Piscatella predicted that Red Dead Redemption 2 would be the best-selling game of 2018, outselling other blockbuster titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Battlefield V, and Fallout 76. Red Dead Redemption 2 is the best-selling retail game in its first week of release and the second-fastest-selling game of 2018 in the UK, behind FIFA 19. The game's opening week UK physical sales were doubled from its predecessor's with 68% of sales being the PS4 version and the remainder on the Xbox One. Red Dead Redemption 2 is also the third-fastest-selling non-''FIFA'' game released this generation, behind Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Within its first week on sale in Japan, the PlayStation 4 version of Red Dead Redemption 2 sold 132,984 copies, which placed it at number one on the all format video game sales chart. Rockstar Games announced that Red Dead Redemption 2 had the largest opening weekend in the history of entertainment, making over $725 million in revenue in three days, and over 17 million copies shipped in total in two weeks, exceeding the lifetime sales of Red Dead Redemption. Additionally, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the second highest-grossing entertainment launch (behind Grand Theft Auto V) and set records for largest ever preorders, largest first-day sales and largest sales for the first three days in market on PlayStation Network. As of August 2019, the game has shipped over 25 million copies. Controversies In an interview with Harold Goldberg of the New York magazine published on October 14, 2018, Dan Houser, Rockstar Games' co-founder and vice president for creative, and head writer for Red Dead Redemption 2, stated that they had been working 100-hour weeks "several times in 2018". Many sources interpreted this statement as "crunch time" for the entire development staff of the game, comparable to similar accusations made by wives of Rockstar San Diego employees in regards to the development of the game's predecessor, with Rockstar Games receiving strong criticism. In a statement sent by Rockstar to various media outlets the following day, it was clarified that the work duration mentioned by Houser only affected the senior writing staff for Red Dead Redemption 2, which comprised him, Michael Unsworth, Rupert Humphries and Lazlow Jones, and that the duration had only been the case for three weeks during the entire development. Houser also added that the company would never expect or force any employee to work as long as was stated, and if anyone was staying late at the development studios, it would be due to their passion for the project. However, other Rockstar employees argued that Houser's statements did not give an accurate picture of the "crunch-time culture" at the company that many of its employees worked under, which included "mandatory" overtime and years-long periods of crunch. Due to the salary-based nature of employment contracts, many of these employees were not compensated for their overtime work and instead depended on year-end bonus payments that hinged on the sales performance of the game. Nonetheless, a sentiment echoed across many employee statements was the observation that working conditions had somewhat improved since development on the original Red Dead Redemption, which had been so demanding that a number of the developers' spouses had voiced their disapproval to Rockstar. In early November 2018, YouTuber Shirrako posted several videos of his player character murdering a female suffragette NPC, including feeding her to an alligator and dropping her down a mineshaft. The videos were both applauded and criticized by YouTube users. In response, YouTube suspended the channel for violation of their community guidelines, citing its graphic nature for shock purposes and for promoting violence. Audiences, including other channels, protested the decision. Conversely, the channel had also published additional videos of similar actions to other non-playable characters, such as those from the Ku Klux Klan. On November 8, 2018, YouTube restored the channel and designated an age restriction to the suffragette videos, commenting "Sometimes we make mistakes, which is why we have multiple escalation paths for reviewers to raise tough decisions and we give creators the right to appeal. The reviewer will be educated on this outcome and on how to avoid repeating this mistake." Rockstar received a cease and desist notice from Securitas AB, the parent company of the modern day Pinkerton National Detective Agency. Securitas asserted that Red Dead Redemption 2 s use of the Pinkerton name and badge imagery was against their trademark of both marks, and demanded royalties for each copy of the game sold or that they would take legal action. Rockstar instead filed a complaint against Securitas in January 2019, asserting that the Pinkerton name was strongly associated with the Wild West, and their use of the term did not infringe on the Pinkerton trademark. Rockstar was seeking a summary judgement to declare the use of Pinkerton in the game as allowed fair use. By April 2019, Take-Two, Rockstar, and Securitas had agreed to an undisclosed settlement, with Securitas subsequently dismissing their lawsuit. Accolades The game won the awards for "Best Music", "Best Moment or Sequence" with "Arthur's Last Ride to Camp/Fight", and "Best Story" at Giant Bomb's 2018 Game of the Year Awards, whereas it became a runner-up each for "Best Looking", "Most Disappointing", and "Best Game". It was also #2 on Entertainment Weekly s 10 Best Games of 2018. The game also won the awards for "Best Graphics", "Best Character" with Arthur Morgan, "Best Setting", "Best Narrative" and "Best Soundtrack" at Game Informer s 2018 Action Game Awards. At IGN's Best of 2018 Awards, the game won the awards for "Best Xbox One Game", "Best Graphics", and "Best Video Game Music", and became runner-up each for "Best Game of the Year", "Best PlayStation 4 Game", "Best Action-Adventure Game", and "Best Video Game Story", whereas its other nomination was for "Best Art Direction". Other media The first music video for the country rap song "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X is composed entirely of footage and clips from Red Dead Redemption 2. 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